


You spelled my name wrong

by telltalehearts



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/M, Flirty!Zayn, M/M, Shy!Liam, ziam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-20
Updated: 2013-04-20
Packaged: 2017-12-09 00:16:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/767759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/telltalehearts/pseuds/telltalehearts
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn and Louis work at a coffeeshop and Liam wants to buy coffee. Flirting ensues.</p><p>---</p><p>This is just fluff, I couldn't get the idea out of my head I'm sorry :P Mentions past Elounor, and touches on possible future Larry, but this fic is mostly Ziam :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	You spelled my name wrong

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own One Direction. This was written for fun and I didn't mean to cause any pain or hurt to anyone. I didn't write this to offend. Whether Larry/Ziam is real or not is none of my business and they can do whatever they want. 
> 
> Thanks for taking the time to read this, I appreciate it! <3 This is my first fic, so I'm sorry if it sucks. I wrote this when I was supposed to do homework.
> 
> EDIT: So apparently there is a story out there quite similar to mine, and since I published after I feel like a bit of a twat. I swear I'd never read that story! I have read that story now though and it is really cute and you guys should definitely check it out: http://archiveofourown.org/works/751606

Zayn stifled a yawn with the back of his hand and rubbed his temples. It was a quarter past six.  
“I love the smell of freshly brewed coffee in the morning!” sing-songed his annoying colleague and kind-of best mate Louis, as he smilingly hung his short green apron over his work clothes.  
“I hate you,” replied Zayn, his voice gravely. Those might have been the first words out of his mouth that day. Or maybe the first words he’d said since yesterday afternoon. Zayn wasn’t a very talkative person.  
“Oh shush, you know I am the light of your life!” laughed Louis and pinched his cheeks lovingly. Zayn only grunted with annoyance, used to his friends irritating habit of constantly touching people. He could rarely keep his hands off people for more than a couple of minutes. When he introduced Louis to any of his other mates, he’d always warn them before-hand that he was “very friendly”, and when the night was over his friends would blush and agree. He was indeed quite friendly. Zayn had found this out his first day at work when Louis had slapped his bum “for luck” as he was taking his first order. He thought that it should probably count as some sort of sexual harassment, but Louis was incredibly charming so he was forgiven.  
“So this really cute guy came in yesterday and Eleanor was batting her eyelashes at him, but he had a bad case of gayface and my gaydar is never wrong…” Zayn tuned out and occasionally nodded his head or made a noise so that Louis would think he was still listening, but they both knew Zayn never listened before 8 anyway. He took some orders from some suits working in the office building down the street, plastering his best fake smile on his lips as he told them to “have a fantastic day!” Sometimes Zayn hated his job. But what can you do when you are a university drop-out and have rent to pay. Really he just wanted to sit with his guitar and play his music, but being a singer/songwriter wasn’t a realistic goal. Louis always told him he had a rockstar vibe about him, with his middle-eastern complexion, dark quiffed hair and dreamy bronze eyes. And of course, his tattoos and worn out leather jackets. But a vibe wouldn’t get him signed. Still he dreamed of giant stadiums and signing posters with his face on them.  
“Zayn!” hissed Lou, bringing him out of his pleasant daydreams. He looked up and saw his energetic friend nod pointedly towards the door, as the stupid chimes clinked to announce a new customer. His blue eyes shined, which could only mean that someone attractive had just come in. Zayn fixed his hair in the mirrors behind the counter and turned to see what Lou had spotted for him. He was not disappointed when in walked a tall young man with (subtly) curly hair as brown as the oak leaves, and smiling lips pink as rose petals. He was talking to someone on the phone and laughing, and Zayn saw the slightest hint of dimples in his cheeks. He turned to look at his friend and Louis winked and gave a thumbs-up. He might be annoying at times, but he sure knew Zayn well enough to know his type. And this new boy was quite breathtaking to be honest. He was wearing a dark red sweatshirt that seemed like it was made for him, with the sleeves rolled up to just beneath his elbows, and when he reached up to run his fingers through his hair the shirt rode up a bit to reveal a sliver of skin above the waistbands of his jeans. Zayn felt the urge to lick his lips but he wasn’t a creep so he didn’t. Instead he threw the towel he was holding over his shoulder and smiled warmly at the stranger as he approached the counter. He hung up the phone, and smiled shyly back at him.  
“May I take your order, sir?” said Zayn in his most sultry voice.  
“And maybe your phone number,” added Lou in an imitation of said sultry voice, but thankfully low enough for only Zayn to hear. He moved back with a laugh as Zayn elbowed him in his side.  
“Um, I’d like a mocha latte, please,” said the customer, “to go.” Zayn will admit he was a bit disappointed the stranger would not stay so he could sneak a glance or two as he worked. Louis, who’d always been able to read his mind, giggled. Zayn picked up a mug and a sharpie.  
“And who’s it for?” he inquired, raising one of his eyebrows in a way that always made the female customers swoon.  
“Liam,” coughed the boy, clearly not entirely unaffected by Zayn’s exotic charms. Another customer stepped in behind him in the queue, but Zayn kept his eyes connected with Liam’s. They were a lovely brown, and he felt he could stare into them all night. 

**Leeyum** , he scribbled in black marker on the cup, spelling it the same adorable way that he’d said it. He then gave it to Louis with the order, and proceeded to take the order of his next customer. Liam shuffled off a bit to the side, his cheeks tinted pink, as he waited for his order to finish. When Lou had finished making it, he snorted a little before handing it to Zayn. Zayn in turn pushed it over the counter to Liam and told him the total. Liam handed him the change and their fingers touched for a second as he took it.  
“Come again” said Zayn, his eyes never leaving Liam’s. He took his coffee and started to walk away. Then he looked at the mug and turned back to Zayn, frowning slightly.  
“You spelled my name wrong,” he stated.  
“Oh did I?” he replied, smirking slightly, “then I guess you’ll have to stop by again soon so I can try again.” He gave Liam a wink and he smiled back and chuckled. Zayn saw his cheeks heat up slightly before he walked away, and he watched his cute bum all the way out the door again.  
“You are such a smooth operator, aren’t ya?” laughed Louis. Zayn turned around and smacked him across the back of his head with the towel, laughing.  
“Ow!” complained Lou, but he laughed too. “You are lucky you are so cute.”

\---

Liam didn’t come back the next day, or the day after that. Zayn had all but given up when he finally did show.  
“Zayn!” hissed Louis, right in his ear as he was trying to stir up an order. He jumped up and spilled coffee on his fingers, and he hissed in pain.  
“Have I told you lately that I hate you?” he mumbled to his friend.  
“I love you too zaynie-poo!” he smiled back. Zayn wiped his hand off on his apron and turned to see what had Lou so excited. As he saw a familiar mop of brown hair saunter in he tried (and failed) to keep a satisfied smirk off his face. He’d started to think his game was off, when he hadn’t managed to lure Liam back. Clearly his moves were still perfect, as he saw Liam awkwardly tugging at his shirt when he noticed him. He was wearing a thin white t-shirt that day, and he looked fantastic in it. You could see he was fit; his biceps could’ve been sculpted by Michelangelo.  
“Oh hello,” said Zayn, putting his burnt finger in his mouth and sucking it off seductively. Liam made an involuntary noise in the back of his throat as he watched and then swallowed nervously. He coughed and his cheeks flushed. Zayn loved it when he made him blush like that.  
“So what can I get for you today?” he asked with a smirk.  
“A mocha latte, to go,” he said, his voice a bit high-pitched. He was watching Zayn’s mouth. He wetted his lips and the other boy subconsciously mirrored him. “For Liam.” He added that last part as an afterthought, and he looked back up into Zayn’s eyes.  
“Coming right up,” he chuckled.

 **Leeyame** , he scribbled on the cup, a slight variation of his last spelling. Louis made the order, and Zayn handed it over with his best smile.  
“Spelling’s still not right,” he said as he handed over the money.  
“What a shame,” Zayn muttred, with a fake frown, “I guess I’ll just have to keep trying.”

\---

Zayn had a couple days off, and he spent them as he almost always did: at work. He had a deal with his manager that he could play live music on Friday and Saturday afternoons. There was a tiny little stage in the back of the shop where he set up with his guitar and a microphone and played some covers of slow love songs. He had a small following, mostly consisting of girls from the nearby college, who came to watch him play. Eleanor was on his shift today, and she and Louis were messing around. Louis should technically have a day off as well, but he liked his job and worked extra. Zayn liked to watch the two joke with each other, they looked so comfortable together. He couldn’t understand why that was since the two had dated for almost three years a few years back. Louis had come out to her, and somehow they’d remained friends through it all. When Zayn had come out to his girlfriend she’d tried to claw his eyes out and then set all pictures she owned of them together on fire in his backyard. 

As he plucked away at the guitar and sang, he kept hoping in the back of his head that Liam would show up, but no such luck. He was usually in a pretty great mood after shows but those two days he walked home a bit dejected. It wasn’t as if he cared that much about Liam, hell, he barely even knew the guy! But he couldn’t deny he was starting to feel like it was a little more then just casual flirting. 

\---

On Sunday he only had a half-day, and then he went to volunteer at an animal shelter down the street from where he lived. He’d started doing it so it would look good on his cover letters when he applied for work, but he’d stayed because he liked it there. But even surrounded by all the adorable fluffy dogs, he couldn’t keep his mind of Liam. It had been three days since he’d seen him last, and the fact that he now saw his eyes in the eyes of a Labrador puppy was kind of pathetic. He wasn’t the kind of bloke who went about and mooned over pretty boys. His last serious relationship had been with the before-mentioned crazy girlfriend. He was miffed with himself, to be quite honest.

\---

On Monday Louis had taken a day off, so it was just him and Eleanor. He actually kind of missed his energetic pixie friend a bit, but only a little bit. Working with Eleanor was always so much calmer, as they worked in comfortable silence. He would never admit to Louis that he missed his constant gossiping and teasing. When Liam showed up, there was no one to warn him. Zayn was out back getting some more cups, so naturally Eleanor went up to take Liam’s order. When he came back out he almost dropped the cups he was so startled, but he managed to right himself and thankfully Liam hadn’t seen him momentarily lose his suave façade. He looked up from Eleanor and spotted Zayn, and he was happy to note his slightly disappointed face turned into a relieved grin when their eyes met. And then his cheeks flushed pink. Adorable, sighed Zayn, and then he wanted to hit himself. He wasn’t going to get emotionally attached, that wasn’t like him. He smirked at Liam, and then put the cups away.  
“I’ll handle this,” he said to a confused Eleanor as he slithered past her to stand in front of his customer. She raised her eyebrows but backed off.  
“I’ll have a mocha…” he started, “…latte to go,” Zayn finished for him, “To Liam.” Liam nervously played with his hair. 

**Lime** , he wrote on the cup, smiling to himself. He made the coffee himself this time, taking his time to make it the best damn cup he’d ever made in his career.  
“That is definitely not how you spell my name,” said Liam with a surprised laugh when he took the cup from Zayn.  
“Oh well, I guess I’ll…” he started.  
“…just have to keep trying,” they finished together. Liam bit his lip and smiled before he left. Zayn was in a great mood for the rest of the day. 

\---

“So I heard puppy-eyes was here and I missed it,” pouted Louis the next day. Zayn smiled to himself at the thought of the brown-haired boy and his blushes. When he didn’t answer Louis went on.  
“So has he asked you out yet? Have you asked him out yet? Have numbers been exchanged?” he asked, “I am only asking because I know that even though this is vital information you wouldn’t have told me unless I asked, which is quite insulting as I am the best friend you’ve got.” He was pulling the puppy-dog pout for maximum effect.  
“Nothing’s happened yet,” he said, and he was quite disappointed about it. They’d definitely had a deep connection the day before. He wasn’t imagining it, he was sure of it. Louis noticed he was a bit upset about it and laid off him for a change, babbling instead about the love-life of one of his many sisters, who’d went and got herself a boyfriend, which Louis of course thought was way too early. Zayn was trying to listen, he really was, but he kept thinking about Liam. But as it had only been a day, he knew not to expect him back so soon. And therefore, both Zayn and Louis were taken completely by surprise when the doorbells chimed not an hour later and there he was.  
“Lou,” he hissed, bringing it to the attention of his friend who was sitting on the edge of the counter with his back to the door. His head spun around so fast Zayn was afraid he’d get whiplash, and he smiled over at Liam. Today, he’d brought a friend with him. When Zayn had first seen Liam he’d thought of his curls as subtle, but this other boy’s curls were definitely not. It was like a bush on his head, and he was combing it across his forehead trying to make it stay on one side when it clearly wanted something different. He was tall and lanky, and perhaps pretty good-looking. But lately Zayn only really seemed to have eyes for Liam. He smiled warmly when he spotted him behind the counter, and Zayn smiled back. He caught Louis sending a cheeky wink in Liam’s friend’s direction and watched him bat his eyelashes in reply. Lou smiled, a bit surprised. He jumped down from the counter and went back to work, sneaking a glance at the curly-haired one every now and then. Liam seemed more confident today, with his friend by his side. Confidence looked very good on him, Zayn noted.  
“I’ll have the usual,” he said, and Zayn raised his eyebrow. He let him sweat for a few seconds before he replied.  
“A mocha latte to go, for Liam,” he said to Louis, still watching Liam. His cheeks tinted a little, but his confidence wasn’t completely gone.  
“I’ll have a Hazelnut Macchiato, thank you” said Liam’s friend with a grin.  
“And your name?” asked Zayn, already scribbling **Lieme** on Liam’s cup.  
“M’names Harry,” he answered. Harry, he dutifully wrote on the other. Louis made Harry’s order and Zayn made Liam’s. Zayn handed Liam his cup, and Louis stretched across the counter with Harry’s.  
“To Harold!” he said as he handed it over with a bow.  
“Thank you my dear sir,” replied Harry in a ridiculously posh accent. Liam seemed slightly embarrassed about it.  
“You spelled my name wrong,” Liam said with a smile, as he paid for both drinks. And then he looked at Harry’s cup with a small frown (though it looked a bit like he was holding back relief to Louis who was watching), “you spelled his name right.” Zayn winked happily.  
“You know, this means you’ll just have to…” he sighed, “…come back, so I can try again!” Liam and Zayn gazed into each other’s eyes for quite some time before Harry dragged his friend away with him.  
“I swear there was hearts in those cold mysterious eyes of yours!” exclaimed Louis as soon as the pair was out the door. Zayn didn’t even look up, he barely heard him at all. 

\---

He showed up the next day again, this time bringing another friend with him. This friend was blonde and loud, with blue eyes and a big grin seemingly permanently fixed on his lips.  
“He didn’t bring the fittie today,” Louis noted with some disappointment. Zayn wouldn’t say that this friend wasn’t as attractive as the last, but like the last time Liam’s friend paled in comparison. Liam practically dragged the blonde up to the counter.  
“I’ll have the same as usual, and my friend Niall here,” he paused, “will have a vanilla latte…”  
“An’ one of them delicious lookin’ muffins!” Niall finished for him in an Irish accent. He was pointing at some muffins on a tray next to the register. 

**Llama** , he wrote on Liam’s cup, and then he frowned. He met Liam’s eyes and saw the smug look on his face. Niall. He thought for a second. Well, the lad was clearly Irish, and so it’d have to be an Irish spelling. He took a stab in the dark, and once they’d made the drinks he handed them over, carefully watching Niall’s face.  
“Oh hey, look Liam!” said Niall pointing to his cup, “they actually spelled my name correctly for once!” Zayn was trying so hard to keep from laughing, and Liam was just staring at him with a shocked expression.  
“Why does yours say llama though?” he wondered, his brows frowned. Louis was laughing so hard Zayn thought he might piss himself right then and there. Liam muttered something while blushing furiously, and dragged his friend with him out the door. Louis laugh ebbed out after a few moments, and they both stared at the door in silence.

\--- 

Why hadn’t he asked him out yet? There were only so many ways you could purposely misspell Liam! Maybe he had a boyfriend already? Was that it? Maybe Niall or Harry was dating him. Maybe all this had all been one-sided and he hadn’t noticed? He was starting to worry, and maybe he even complained a bit to Louis. Slowly but surely, Zayn was turning into one of those desperate girls in American films, who sit and wait by the phone for hours. He was watching the door the whole morning, just hoping Liam would walk in. Maybe he’d lean over the counter and press his lips against his own, and then he’d confess his love in front of the whole shop. And Louis would applaud as the two of them embraced, and he’d throw his apron on the floor and leave with him as the customers would wipe tears from their eyes because it was just. so. romantic!  
He was leaning against the counter with his chin in his hands, daydreaming, when he walked in. He hurriedly straightened himself and Louis sensed a change and turned. It was only him this time, which meant he was a bit shyer than the last two times. Zayn had promised himself to be less lovey-dovey today, to not be a puddle at this boy’s feet anymore. He couldn’t wait around forever. But he felt all that slip away from him when he gazed into Liam’s beautiful eyes. The sides of his mouth automatically turned up into a happy lovesick smile.  
“Um, I’ll have… I’ll have what I always have,” he said and flushed bright pink. He was toying with his hair again. Zayn scribbled on the cup and Louis whipped together the beverage. Liam took it from Zayn, who held on to it a bit, feeling Liam’s fingers against his own. He got the money for the coffee, and then watched as Liam looked down at his cup.

**Lee-are you ever going to ask for my number-yum**

If he’d been pink before, he was red as a tomato now. He stuttered a bit, swallowing nervously, his eyes darting from the cup to Zayn and back. Zayn waited patiently, feeling his smile slip a bit for every second he was standing there. Liam’s phone rang, and he cursed a bit and picked up.  
“Yes, boss, I will be in soon, sir” he said, and with an embarrassed glance at Zayn he turned around and walked out the door. Zayn’s smile slipped right off his face and this time it was his cheeks that reddened. With humiliation. Louis put a comforting hand on his shoulder, and was for once completely silent. Zayn felt a bit like crying.

\---

On Friday he watched Louis watch him from behind the counter, a concerned expression on his face. Eleanor was in turn concerned about Louis, because she couldn’t fathom why he wasn’t babbling away like he usually was. Zayn hugged his guitar close to him on the tiny stage. He’d picked some songs about heartbreak for his setlist, because he just couldn’t sing his normal songs this weekend. He finished off a slow acoustic version of ‘Here I Go Again On My Own’ by Whitesnake, and he watched Lou grimace. Louis knew this wasn’t normal for Zayn, and he must understand that Liam meant a lot more to him then he’d ever admitted out loud. He’d just started the first chords to ‘I Can't Live If Living Is Without You’ by Air Supply, when the doorbells chimed. Louis spun around and saw Liam there, looking a bit unsure and nervous. When he walked up to the counter he found himself face to face with a pretty angry-looking Lou. Zayn put his guitar down, and watched. Liam hadn’t seen him yet. His best mate and his crush were talking in hushed tones, and he couldn’t really hear them. Liam was mostly looking at his shoes with his hands in his pockets. Louis was gesticulating a lot with his hands and arms. Zayn looked on as Liam talked to Lou and Louis expression softened a little. He bent over the counter and said something to Liam, and he turned bright red and then nodded. Then, without any warning, Louis nodded towards Zayn in the corner, still looking at Liam. Zayn and Liam’s eyes met across the shop. He picked the guitar back up and decided to discard his setlist in favour of playing a song which title reminded him the most of Liam right then. His voice, thick with emotion, started singing the first verse of ‘Bright Eyes’ by Art Garfunkel, and Liam’s eyes widened as he listened to Zayn’s wonderful voice for the first time. Louis and Eleanor, who were listening from behind the counter, agreed that this was the best Zayn had ever sounded. Zayn and Liam kept eye contact throughout the entire song, and when he played the last chords, the shop erupted in loud applause. Liam walked over and climbed up on the little stage, and Zayn put his guitar away and stood up. They were so close; it felt strange without a counter to separate them.  
“I was going to ask you out I just hadn’t worked up the nerve yet,” Liam said, blushing, and then he leaned in and kissed Zayn. The crowd cheered as Zayn, smiling, returned the kiss. They could hear Louis whistling and cheering the loudest from behind the counter. 

\---

Harry, Niall and Louis had all come over the night before and celebrated their one-week anniversary, which Zayn thought was an incredibly stupid thing to celebrate, especially when he was sure there would be thousands of weeks if he had his way. Zayn had ended up falling asleep on Liam on his ratty old couch, but when he woke up his boyfriend wasn’t there. He stretched and tiptoed into the kitchen, where he found Liam looking through his cupboards for a mug to pour coffee in. Zayn snuck up behind him and kissed his neck.  
“Good morning,” he smiled. He was so happy.  
“Good morning,” replied Liam. “Now go sit over there I’m making you coffee for a change!” he ordered and Zayn went to sit down with a chuckle. Liam opened another cupboard and found it filled with paper cups from the coffee-shop.  
“Oops,” said his boyfriend, and Liam looked at him.  
“You’re stealing these?” he asked. Zayn shrugged. He took one, poured some coffee in it and placed a lid on top. Then he found a marker in a drawer, and smiling at Zayn, wrote his name on it.  
“Here you go,” he said, handing him his coffee. He smiled down at him, hearts in his eyes. Zayn looked at the cup, and then he laughed so hard he might have peed just a little bit.  
“The irony!” he wheezed, as Liam looked at him, clearly confused.  
 **Sayn <3**, it said on the cup, in Liam’s handwriting. Zayn got up, and wiping tears from his eyes, he leaned in to whisper in his boyfriend’s ear.  
“You spelled my name wrong.”


End file.
